Rita's Chicken Parmesan

Ingredients

• 8 ounces pasta
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts (2 large breasts, halved)
• Coarse-grained salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 2 egg whites
• 2 slices bread, stale, coarsely processed into bread crumbs
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 cups tomato sauce, recipe follows
• 2 ounces skim milk mozzarella, grated

Directions

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the salt. Add the pasta and cook until al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, pound the chicken breasts between 2 pieces of plastic wrap with the flat side of a meat mallet. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.

In a shallow dish, whisk together the egg whites and salt and pepper. Add a splash of water if the mixture is too thick. Place bread crumbs in a shallow dish.

Dip the chicken first in the egg white and then in the bread crumbs. Let the chicken rest on a rack for 5 minutes.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, turning once, until lightly golden, about 3 to 4 minutes per side (to reduce the calories even further, bake the chicken at 350 degrees F for 10 to 12 minutes instead of sauteing the chicken in oil).

Place a thin coating of tomato sauce in the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Lay the chicken over sauce. Cover the chicken with more sauce, sprinkle with cheese and bake until cheese is bubbly and golden brown, about 5 to 10 minutes.

Pour remaining sauce over pasta. Taste and adjust seasonings. Serve immediately.

Tomato Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 medium cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (28-ounce) can crushed or diced tomatoes with juice
• Coarse-grained salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup basil leaves, hand torn

Combine olive oil and garlic in a large saute pan and turn heat to medium. Cook until garlic is fragrant but not brown. Stir in tomatoes and salt and pepper to taste. Reduce heat to medium low and simmer until sauce has thickened slightly, stirring occasionally, 10 to 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings. Add basil and simmer for 1 minute more.